KIRKUK, Iraq: Gunmen killed five soldiers and policemen on Saturday when they attacked a checkpoint in a Turkmen town in northern Iraq, an army captain said.

The victims were manning the checkpoint in the town of Rashidiyah, northeast of the main northern city of Mosul, when the gunmen opened fire.

Five members of the security forces were killed and two others were wounded, the source said, without giving a breakdown.

Iraq's Turkish-speaking Turkmen community includes about 500,000 people living mostly in Mosul, Kirkuk and Tal Afar. They have been the target of a number of deadly attacks, blamed by local authorities on Al-Qaeda.

The latest violence comes amid a spike in attacks, with Iraq suffering a wave of unrest in June. At least 282 people were killed, according to an AFP tally, though government figures said 131 Iraqis died.

While violence in Iraq has declined dramatically since its peak in 2006-2007, attacks remain common across the country.